Certain Gene Traits, Anxiety Linked to Elevated Risk of Heart Attack During Periods of Stress

People who possess certain gene traits and those who have anxiety or depression have a significantly higher risk of heart attack during periods when major social or political events are taking place, according to a study being presented at the American College of Cardiology 73rd Annual Scientific Session & Expo. The findings are especially pertinent given this is a presidential election year.

Research has long shown that the incidence of heart attacks tends to spike around certain times, such as the winter holidays, but the reasons for this trend have yet to be elucidated. Less research has been done on cardiac events that occur around major elections and sporting events. This study was the first to examine the genetic basis for stress sensitivity as a potential driver for acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Researchers analyzed data from 18,428 people who provided health information and blood samples to
the Mass General Brigham Biobank. All participant records included a neuroticism polygenic risk score (nPRS), a well-established metric that reflects a person’s genetic predisposition to stress. The researchers assessed nPRS scores among people who experienced ACS events during periods of high sociopolitical stress, those who experienced ACS events during control periods, and those who did not experience ACS.

Further Proof That Stress Kills

According to the results, people with high genetic stress sensitivity had a higher risk of ACS during stressful periods, and that risk was more than tripled among those who also had anxiety or depression. “We found people who are genetically predisposed to stress tend to have a strikingly higher probability of developing a heart attack after these stressful events,” said Shady Abohashem, MD, an instructor of cardiovascular imaging in the Cardiology Department of the Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School and the lead study author, via a press release. “With this study, we have identified a new factor that could be incorporated into screening to identify people who are at increased risk. This could also help shape prevention strategies and help us see how we might be able to intervene.”

For this analysis, periods considered to have high levels of social or political stress included the 10 days after
Christmas each year, the 5 days after each presidential election, and the 5 days after major sporting events (eg, the Super Bowl and NBA playoffs). In the control arm, researchers compared these high-stress periods with other days of the year.

The findings showed that individuals with above median nPRS scores were 34% more likely to experience ACS during
stressful periods than during control periods, even after accounting for traditional cardiovascular risk factors, such as age, sex, smoking, diabetes, and health behaviors like alcohol consumption.

“We now understand that there are certain factors driving this increase in heart attacks in those who are at
increased risk,” Dr. Abohashem said. “We could potentially target those people with screenings and dual benefit interventions, such as exercise, yoga, mindfulness, or other approaches that are associated with reductions in anxiety and depression and also with lowering cardiovascular risk.”